Sports lifestyle shoes dominated the U.S. footwear market in 2024, according to the latest data from Circana.
Indeed, the category, which consists mainly of athleisure sneakers, generated $31 billion in sales, and was the number one footwear segment in terms of both dollar sales and incremental dollar volume growth, up 3 percent versus 2023. Circana noted that this growth was driven by the popularity of running, soccer and training-inspired sneakers.
In total, Circana’s Consumer Tracking Service—which covers wholesale footwear sales and does not include brands’ direct-to-consumer businesses—found that U.S. footwear industry sales totaled $89.2 billion in 2024, a flat performance over 2023.
Performance running shoes also did well in 2024, with sales increasing 6 percent to $7.4 billion for the year, driven by a mix shift to more premium, higher priced product.
Looking at the fashion category, Circana noted that the footwear segment continued to see declines. For the full year, the fashion category saw sales dip 3 percent. Bright spots in the category, however, included women’s seasonless shoe silhouettes such as flats, ballerinas, and pumps, as well as slippers, which performed especially well during the back-to-school and holiday months.
As for the fourth quarter, the retail tracking service found that footwear sales during the core holiday time frame of Black Friday week through the end of the year grew 3 percent, versus 2023. This was mainly driven by strong demand for the most popular footwear brands and items, and the consumers’ willingness to pay close to full price for them, Circana said.
“Value and versatility will again be the name of the game in the year ahead,” Beth Goldstein, footwear and accessories analyst at Circana, said in a statement. “Economic uncertainties will continue to weigh on consumers and impact their spending behaviors, making it likely that footwear industry sales will remain soft overall in 2025.”
Goldstein noted that higher-priced performance footwear and retro product have provided some growth areas in the industry. “Brands and manufacturers will need to manage their supply and demand here and focus on innovation in these hot areas of the market,” she added.
This data comes as shoe prices showed little movement in December, according to the Footwear Distributors and Retailers of America (FDRA).
Last month, retail footwear prices increased a scant 0.6 percent from a year ago, according to the FDRA. This came as higher prices for children’s shoes, up 2.5 percent, and women’s footwear, up 0.4 percent, were offset by a 0.2 percent decrease in men’s footwear prices in December.
For the full year, the FDRA noted that footwear prices rose a modest 0.7 percent from 2023, the second straight year of little change.